The financial report for the third quarter of 2009 published by cancer treatment company Biocancell Therapeutics Ltd. (TASE:BICL) underscores the necessity of its planned fundraising. The company's auditor, KPMG Israel - Somekh Chaikin appended a going concern warning to the financial report. It said that further product development depended on future events, including the raising of additional capital and achieving future operating profits. This raises "material doubt about the company's existence as a going concern."
Biocancell's BC-819 drug for the treatment of various cancers is undergoing Phase I/II and Phase II clinical trials for various indications.
Biocancell had NIS 4.9 million in cash at the end of September, and NIS 3 million in current liabilities. The company estimates that it has enough cash to last through February 2010.
Biocancell does not yet have any revenue. It spent NIS 1.3 million on R&D in the third quarter, and it posted a net loss of NIS 5.4 million. Its cumulative loss in January-September was NIS 28.8 million.
In a separate development, Biocancell today notified the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange (TASE) that treatment of the first patient had begun in the Phase I/II safety and effectiveness clinical trial of BC-819 for the treatment of pancreatic cancer. BC-819 has already undergone preclinical trials on hamsters for this disease.
Biocancell plans to recruit 9-12 patients for the clinical trial. Hadassah Medical Organization Ein Kerem Hospital, Meir Hospital in Kfar Saba, and the Massey Cancer Center in Virginia are participating. The University of Maryland Medical Center in Baltimore is also scheduled to participate. Israel-United States Binational Industrial Research and Development Foundation (BIRD-F) is partly funding the trial in the US with a $950,000 grant.
Biocancell CEO Uri Danon said, "This is a very exciting moment for us to begin the Phase I clinical trial for pancreatic cancer, one of the most lethal cancers."
Biocancell's share rose 2.7% by mid-afternoon to NIS 3.15, giving a market cap of NIS 50.2 million. The share is up 658% year-to-date.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on November 9, 2009
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